Can drying machine



Rd. STEWART ET AL CAN DRYING MACHINE June 25; 19400 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Aug. 28, 1937 L w *3 gmwww few r/ 515M 1:

June 25,v 1940. R J. STEWART ET AL 0 CAN DRYING MACHINE F'iled Aug. 28, 1937 2 Sheets-Sh'aet 2 v, J5 1,2 III I "1 2 15 u Patented June 25, 1940 UNITED VTSTATES" PATENT. oFFicr.

more, Md, assignors Company, Inc., Baltimore, Md, a corporation of New York Application August 28,

5 Claims.

The present invention relates to a can drying machine and, more particularly, to a machine for drying the exteriors of metal cans.

It is standard practice in the canning of most food products to pasteurize or cook the product by passing the closed and sealed can containing the product through a pasteurizer or similar apparatus. After pasteurization a label is adl hesively attached to the can, but because the o exterior of the can is thoroughly wet during the pasteurizing process, dimculty is encountered in securely attaching a label to the can. Even if the can is only slightly moist when it comes from the pasteurizer, and hence is not too wet to have alabel adhere thereto, 1: it is labeled in that condition, rust may form on the exterior of the can, particularly at points where the tin coating has beenfractured during seaming. Obviously, any portion of the can where the tin coating is 20 cracked and which has moisture left thereon to dry in the air will be liable to rust, with the result that the can will have a very unsightly appearance.

Previously developed apparatus and methods' 25 for drying cans after pasteurizing have included arrangements whereby the cans have rolled at high speed down a series of chutes. Such apparatus has not been at all practical because of the iactthat the mechanism occupied a very considerable space, often times a greater space than either the pasteurizlng apparatus pr the labeler. Also, in the operation of these prior machines and in the use of these prior methods, the water thrown from the cans has accumulated on the machines to such an extent that ,it subsequently dripped upon cans passing through the machines and many cans would leave the machines in almost as wet a condition as when they entered, even though the moisture might have been removed therefrom at some stage during their passage through a machine.

The principal object of the present invention is to provide amachine whereby moisture may he rapidly removed from a. can.

Another important object of the invention is to provide a machine of the above type, and wherein a machine embodying the invention will occupy a minimum space, but will have a capacity greatly in excess of machines previously developed for the same purpose.

Still another object of the invention is to provide a drying machine whereby moisture will be removed from the entire surface of the can, the w machine also being such that the removed mois- 1937, Serial No. 181,524 (01. as -1:1

ture cannot come to contact with cans subsequently passed through the machine.

Other objects and advantages ofthe invention will be apparent from the following specification and drawings, wherein:

Figure l is a side elevation of the machine of are invention, partly in vertical longitudinal sec- Figure 2 is a transverse and vertical sectional view taken on the line 2-2 of Figure 1.

Figure 3 is a fragmentary transverse and sectional view taken on the line 3-3 of Figure 1.

Figure 4 is a fragmentary transverse and vertical sectional view taken on the line 4-4 of Figure l.

Figure 5 is a diagrammatic view a: the manner I in which the machine of the present invention may be positioned with respect to a pasteurizer and 'labeler, and t Figure 6 isY a fragmentary view showing the 20 manner in which the belts of the machine contact with a can moving therethrough.

The numeral. 8 designates the base of the machine which is tormed of two side frame members 9 provided with legs ll at each end and Joined adjacent their ends by suitable cross members ll." Pairs of posts, i2 and I3 extend through and above the side frames 8, the posts I! being at opposite sides of the infeed end of the machine and the posts It being at opposite sides of the outfeed end. A longitudinally extending bar i4 extends between the post I! and the post I3 on each side of the machine and each bar is secured in vertically adjusted position with respect to the posts by lock nuts II threaded upon the posts.

The posts I2 extend upwardly past the bars it and have a motor supporting plate it extending between the same, the support it also being secured in adjusted position by means of lock nuts.

The machinei's driven by a motor ll mounted on the'plate it, motor ll driving a belt it movabout a pulley it fixed to a horizontal shaft 2d journaled in the infeed ends of the bars it. The shaft Ed .has grooved pulleys M axially spaced thereon, the pulleys being so mounted upon the shaft that they may be moved along the se to adjust their spacing so that the machine may handle various size cans. vEach pulley it has an endless belt 22 moving about the same, the far end oi'the belts moving about pulleys it adiustably secured to a horizontal shaft it Journaled in the opposite end of bar it, the lower runs of the two belts it thus extending horizontally to engage the upper portions of cans movingfthroughthe machine. As is indicated by arrows in Figure 1, the'lower rulns of feed end of the base of the machine. Pulley 28 is of slightly smaller diameter than the pulley I9 from which it is driven, with the result that the shaft 29 will rotate at a slightly higher speed I than the shaft 20. An idler pulley 23a mounted on the frame 9 for vertical adjustment serves to hold the belt 29 under proper tension.

Shaft 29 has a pair of grooved pulleys" adjustably secured below the pulleys 23 on upper shaft 24, and endless belts 3| extend about the pulleys 30, the far or infeed ends of the belts 3| moving about pulleys 34, positioned on a shaft 35 journaled in the base 9, so that the pulleys 34 are beneath the upper pulleys 2|. The pulleys 34 are adjustable lengthwise 0f the shaft 35. It will be noted that the lower shafts 23 and 35 are shown somewhat farther apart than the upper shafts 20 and 24. As a result, a can' will never be subject to pressure from both pulleys at the same instant, and distortion of the cans is thereby avoided.

Because of the fact that the lower belts 3| are moved in the opposite direction from the upper belts 22, as indicated by the arrow in Figure 1, a can C position between the opposed peripheries of the belts will be bodily rotated. The belts or can holding means are moved at a sumciently high speed that a can positioned between the same will be "rotated accordingly, for example, at about 3,000 revolutions per minute. The fact that the lower belts 3| are driven through the relatively small pulley 29 will cause the lower belts to move at a higher speed than the upper belts 22 so that a can positioned between the opposed runs of the belts will move from the infed end of the machlneto. its outfeed end while bodily rotating at high speed. Idler pulleys, 39 adjustablysecured to transverse shafts 40 journaled in and spaced along the base 9 and also along the bars ll are incontact with the opposed runs of the belts 22 and 3| so as to hold these runs in firm contact with cans moving between the same, the pulleys 39 preferably being of sufliciently small diameter that they will'only contact with the opposed runs of the belts. The posts l2 adjacent the infeed end of the machine have brackets 4| secured to their lower ends and in which are mounted a cross shaft 42, the shaft 42 carrying tensioning pulleys 43, one positioned beneath the lower run of each lower belt 3|. The pulleys 33 are mounted antifrictionally on shaft 32, and are adjustable lengthwise of one shaft. Because the brackets 4| are vertically adjustable on the posts l2 the tension of the lower belts 3| may be adjusted as desired. To enable the tension of the upper belts 22 to be adjusted, the posts l3 adjacent the outfeed end of the machine have brackets "45 adjustably secured thereto and a shaft 46 fixed in these brackets carries spaced pulleys 41 antifrictionally joumaled on and adjustable along the shaft.

In order to prevent the cans C from moving so far axially that one end will move entirely suitable brackets 5| adjustable transverselylof the machine, and the width of the guide bars 33 in a vertical direction is suillciently small that they will not cover the entire end of a can supported by the belts 22 and 3|.

, In use, the belts are so spaced axially by their shafts that the distance between their outer edges will be' greater than the length of the can, and so that the end of the can will be about midway of the width of each belt. The guide bars 5" would be positioned very slightly beyond the outer edges of the belts." In other words the cans will not be in continual contact "with the guide bars, and may move slightly airially without either falling from the belts at one end, or coming into contact with the guide bars, but if a. can moves anally, one end will come into contact with a guide bar before the] other end may move from 'between its holding belts.

A spray hood or moisture collector 5| is provided on the machine, this hood being of inverted v-shape in transverse cross section as shown in Figure 2 and extending down and partially about the pulleys l9 and 23. The lower edges of the hood are bent inwardly and upwardly to form a trough 53 which may be inclined to a drain point as at 54. By this arrangement, any moisture which might be thrown upwardly by centrifugal action from the upper belts 22 as the latter moves upwardly about the pulleys 2| will strike an inclined undersurface of the sprayhood 5,2 and, because of surface tension efiect,,flow down along this surface to its edge trough 53 which is spaced outwardly from themoving parts of the machine. It will thus be impossible for water which might be thrown upwardly from the belts or cans to fall directly back upon the machine or upon cans moving bear upon the then upper and lower portions of end seams S of a can 0. Also, the belts are of sufficiently firm material and are so spaced from each other that the seam beads S cannot be embedded in the belts to such an extent during passage through the machine that the belts may bear upon the .wall W of the body of the can, or even surroundor enclose the portion of the seam-bead S with which they contact. By this arrangement, at any given moment, the only surface of the can which will be in contact with the belts 22 and 3| will be two small tangential areas of the seam beads S. The entire remaining surface of the can will be uncovered and rapidly rotating so that any water upon these exposed portions will be free to move centrifugally from the can. It will also be noted that the portions S of the seam S at the ends of the can, as well as the portions S of the seams ad-j jacent the wall W of the can 'will not come in contact with the belts 22 and. 3|. It is at these points that cracking of the tin coating during seaming is most apt to occur and it is therefore particularly desirable to have these surfaces uncovered so that water may be entirely and certainly removed therefrom.

Since the belts 22 and'3l move with extreme rapidity, any water which may be deposited upon the belts by contact with the radial faces of the can seam beads S will be thrown from the belts as they move away from the cans and about the respective pulleys 2| and 30. As a (5 result, when that portion of a belt returns into contact with a can, it will be entirely dry.

. Figure 5 diagrammatically shows the machine of the present invention positioned intermediate a pasteurizer and a labeler 6|, so that cans moving from the pasteurizer will be conveyed to the labeler by the present apparatus and will be dried during such movement.

From the above it will be understood that the belts or can holding means will not engage any such area of the cans as to prevent moisture from being entirely removed and, in any event, the small area of the can in contact with the belts is continually changing, Also, any moisture deposited on the belts will be thrown from them by centrifugal action so that a dry portion of the belt will be presented to each incoming can. It will also be noted that the inclined spray hood 52 to receive particles of water thrown upwardly' from the cans will prevent any water from dropping back upon the machine, or upon cans moving through the same. Because of the high speed of rotation imparted to cans moving through the machine, water will be thrown from the cans in very small particles and, because of the angle of the walls of the spray head or collector, such particles will flow down along the underside of the hood 52 rather than accumulating in large particles and dropping directly down from the collector.

It will be understood that the invention is not limited to the details of construction disclosed herein, and that the example of the use of the invention which has been given does not include all of the uses of which it is capable; also, that the phraseology employed in the specification is for thepurpose of description and not of limita tion.

We claim:

1. The combination in a can drying machine, of oppositely disposed elementshaving their peripheries spaced and aligned in the same plane to support a can therebetween, means to: support said elements for movement, and means to move said elements in opposite directions, one at a higher speed than the other, to rotate the cans to centrifugally remove moisture therefrom and to move the cans through the machine.'

2. The combination in a can drying machine,

of oppositely disposed elements having their peripheries spaced to support a can therebetween, means to support said elements for movement, means to move said elements in opposite directions to rotate the cans to centrifugally remove moisture therefrom, and inclined means above said elements to receive moisture thrown from the rotating cans.

3. The combination in a can drying machine, of a pair of axially spaced endless elements, a second pair of axially spaced endless elements, means to support said elements for movement and to position each element of the first pair opposite and spaced from-an element of the second pair so that a can may be engaged at spaced points thereon and between the pairs of elements, and means to move said respective pairs of elements in opposite directions, one at a. higher speed than the other, to rotate the cans to remove moisture therefrom, and to move the cans through the machine.

4. The combination in a can drying machine, of a pair of axially spaced endless elements, a second pair of axially spaced elements, means to support said elements for movement and to position each element of the first pair opposed to and spaced from an element of the second pair so that a can maybe engaged between the pairs of elements and adjacent its ends, and means positioned outwardly from and between the pairs of opposed endless elements to guide a can moving between the elements.

5. The combination in a machine for drying cans provided with spaced annular shoulders, of a pair of axially spaced endless elements, a second pair of. axially spaced endless elements, means to support said elements for movement and to position each element of the first pair op-- pcsite and spaced from an element of the second ,pair so that the can shoulders may be engaged between the pairs of elements, and means to' 7 move said respective pairs of elements in opposite directions to rotate the cans to remove moisture therefrom, said endless elements being of sufliciently firm material that the shoulders will not become embedded therein,

ROBERT J. STEWART. W'ILTIE I. GLADFELTER. 

